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Site Report: Arctic Village Former Power Plant

Site Name: Arctic Village Former Power Plant
Address: Downtown Arctic Village, Next to Store and Post Office, Arctic Village, AK 99722
File Number: 700.38.002
Hazard ID: 4376
Status: Active
Staff: * Currently Not Assigned, 9072693057 bill.oconnell@alaska.gov
Latitude: 68.125604
Longitude: -145.538470
Horizontal Datum:WGS84

We make every effort to ensure the data presented here is accurate based on the best available information currently on file with DEC. It is therefore subject to change as new information becomes available. We recommend contacting the assigned project staff prior to making decisions based on this information.

Problems/Comments

During a 1994 site visit ADEC staff identified significant staining around tanks and drums, and described soil beneath the building as being saturated with fuel. Two large above ground tanks (assumed to be empty) and numerous unmarked drums are abandoned on site and broken batteries were observed. The property is located between the post office and the village store, and is considered a high traffic area for residents. Pictures in file document observations. A Phase I Environmental Site Assessment in 2007 documented past releases of oil, diesel fuel, anti-freeze, chlorine, and fluoride, including a release of approximately 4,000 to 5,000 gallons of diesel fuel inside the structure. In addition, a diesel fuel seep was reportedly documented southwest of the property.In 2011, the Yukon River Inter-Tribal Watershed Council funded a Phase I ESA. Surface soil sampling and a hazardous building materials survey occurred in 2015 through DEC Brownfield Assessment funding. Hazardous materials remain in the building and will need to be managed appropriately when it is demolished.

Action Information

Action Date Action Description DEC Staff
4/9/2007 Exposure Tracking Model Ranking Initial ranking completed. Mitzi Read
4/9/2007 Site Added to Database Site added to the database. Mitzi Read
2/1/2008 Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other Receive Phase I ESA titled: Phase I ESA, Former Public Health Service Building, Arctic Village, AK, completed by URS for YRITWC (9/11/07). Report provides details on site history and status. Refers to site as the former Public Health Service building since the PHS developed the site first as a washeteria for the community. No data collected as part of this effort. John Carnahan
8/26/2014 Update or Other Action Updated locational information in database based on location of tanks as shown in a 2007 Phase I report in the file and the 1991 DCRA Community map. Janice Wiegers
1/30/2015 Potentially Responsible Party/State Interest Letter Letter sent to Arctic Village Tribal Council following coordination with AVTC IGAP - no previous record of PRP letter existed. John Carnahan
6/25/2015 Brownfields Award Native Village of Venetie Tribal Government applied for and received a DEC Brownfield Assessment or Cleanup (DBAC) to evaluate hazardous materials in the on-site building and to sample soil contamination on the property and beneath the building. Edit: EPA State and Tribal Response Program (STRP) funds $32,049 awarded. NTP # 160001128. Letter confirming successful application for FY2016 funding was sent to Lance Whitwell, Environmental Director, on this date. Current status: eligible. Site has confirmed Hazardous Building Materials (asbestos, lead in paint, mercury/PCBs in lamps) and petroleum in soil. Janice Wiegers
9/10/2015 Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other Shannon & Wilson submitted workplan for hazardous building survey and site soil sampling. Sampling will be conducted for VOCs, GRO, DRO, RRO, RCRA metals, and PCBs. DEC approved workplan on this date. S&W plans to send field staff to Arctic Village on 9/22/15. Janice Wiegers
9/12/2016 Update or Other Action Received letter from ADEC Solid Waste discussing removal of asbestos-containing material and lead-based paint during demolition of the structure. An email from John Pavitt (EPA) was included in the letter that describes how to address the gypsum wallboard with joint compound, which contains some asbestos. Janice Wiegers
4/6/2017 Document, Report, or Work plan Review - other Shannon & Wilson submitted final report titled "Limited Site Assessment and Hazardous Building Materials Report". The report describes the 2105 soil sampling effort during which 6 soil samples were collected from the ground surface (no deeper than 1.5 feet) and from under the former powerplant building. Deeper sampling was planned, but frozen ground and snow prevented a more complete characterization. Soil samples were also collected from the floor inside the building. DRO, RRO, toluene, xylenes, naphthalene, and trichlorofluormethane were found in soil but did not exceed arctic zone cleanup levels. DRO was found under the building near the location of the generators at concentrations up to 12,400 mg/kg, which is close to the arctic zone cleanup level. Petroleum contamination is not considered delineated at this location, and due to the proximity to surface water (~300 feet), migration to surface water should also be considered. The hazardous building materials survey (HBMS) was also appended to this report. The HBMS found the following in the former generator building: 1)friable and non-friable asbestos in joint compound, gray-green duct sealants, black roof patching tars, and assumed to be in boiler gaskets and sealants; 2)lead-based paints throughout building, 3)polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and mercury associated with high intensity discharge lamps and fluorescent lamps. The report also indicated that any radioactive materials, refrigeration units, and chemicals would need to be removed, handled, packaged, and disposed of in accordance with applicable regulations. Mold was also suspected in the building but was not tested. Janice Wiegers
9/5/2017 Update or Other Action Received notice from State Historic Preservation Office that no historic properties are affected by the planned brownfield project. Janice Wiegers
8/24/2018 Update or Other Action DEC received proposals for building material abatement via removal and disposal; however, the lowest bid was greater than the available funding, and the project was not awarded. Janice Wiegers
12/27/2021 Exposure Tracking Model Ranking A new updated ranking with ETM has been completed for source area 75361 ASTs / Drums / Batteries. Janice Wiegers

Contaminant Information

Name Level Description Media Comments

Control Type

Type Details

Requirements

Description Details
Hazard ID Site Name File Number
1599 Arctic Village School 700.38.001, 700.57.001
4021 Arctic Village School Standby Gen. 700.38.003, 700.57.001
3947 Arctic Village Airport Power Plant & Utility Tank Farm 700.38.004

Missing Location Data

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